Public concern over power transmiss

Public concern over power transmission lines initially involved aesthetics of towers, property right-of-way issues, and nuisance effects, which include interference with radio and television reception, audible noise, and induced shocks that can occur when a person standing beneath an EHV line touches a large ungrounded metal object such as a truck or farm vehicle. Potential health effects were first noted in the early 1970s in scientific and medical literature. Under certain circumstances, the membranes of cells can be sensitive to even fairly weak externally imposed low-frequency electromagnetic fields, and bio- chemical responses can be triggered. A government-sponsored review of the ELF health effects literature found the existing information complex and inconclusive. However, effects are clearly demonstrated at the cellular level, and epidemiological evidence is beginning to provide a basis for concern about risks from chronic exposure. Some states have established limits on field strength in right of ways.5